WEST POINT , Georgia -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A community that seemed on the road to becoming a ghost town has taken a turn toward prosperity despite the recession , thanks to an automaker .

A roadside sign in West Point , Georgia , expresses support for Kia 's new factory .

Korean car manufacturer Kia plans to open a sprawling automobile factory in tiny West Point , Georgia , by the end of the year . The boon has already spurred economic growth -- and just plain excitement -- among residents , said Mayor Drew Ferguson .

`` We jokingly call it Kia-ville , '' said Ferguson , a 42-year-old dentist helping to oversee expansion of West Point , population 3,500 . The announcement is drawing workers and businesses to the community about 80 miles south of Atlanta .

`` The revitalization of the community is touching every aspect , '' Ferguson said . `` We have infrastructure projects , new subdivisions going up , hotel professional services that are all needed to support the massive manufacturing . ''

The plant , which will make Kia 's Sorento sport utility vehicle , has hired 500 workers . By the time the factory opens , Kia hopes to hire 2,000 more . A smattering of Kia supply companies will eventually employ 7,500 additional workers . Watch the town 's excitement about the new factory ''

`` A lot of people feel that we are the savior for this area , which I hope we will be , '' said Randy Jackson , director of human resources for the manufacturing plant . `` We got 43,013 applications ; 75 percent of those applications came from Georgia , and about 20 percent came from our neighboring state of Alabama . ''

Some of those applications are coming from auto workers around the country , including Detroit , Michigan , Jackson said .

Overall , West Point stands to gain 20,000 jobs as a result of the factory during the next five years , Ferguson said .

Georgia 's 9.7 percent unemployment rate reported in May is about the same as the June national average of 9.5 percent , according to federal statistics . The U.S. Department of Labor reported unemployment in a five-county region including West Point at 8.6 percent .

To secure the $ 1.2 billion Kia plant , state and local officials helped assemble land from a former cattle farm to create a 2,200-acre industrial park . They also locked in about $ 400 million in tax breaks and other economic incentives .

`` We think the investment will pay off big time , '' Ferguson said . `` We 're already seeing it . But it 's not only in the dollars , but in the hope and opportunity , and the ability to create new jobs . ''

Ruthann Williams invested her life savings to buy and open the Irish Bred Pub on West Point 's Main Street . Now she commutes to work 45 minutes a day from her North Georgia home .

`` I came here because of Kia , '' Williams said . `` We jumped in with both feet and have not looked back one time . ''

` My little town was gon na die '

Plans for the new factory have transformed a community that during the past ten years has been becoming a ghost town . Textile mills that once defined West Point shut down in the 1990s , leaving many out of work .

Debbie Williams , co-owner of the popular Roger 's Bar-B-Que , was worried her business would go under .

`` We 'd go downtown and there was nothing there , '' Williams said . `` I thought my little town was gon na die . ''

Margaret McManus was laid off last year when the textile mill she worked for closed . The 52-year-old went back to school to study information technology . In April she landed a job as a trainer with Daehan Solutions Georgia , a parts supplier for Kia . McManus said she did n't think in a million years she 'd be making car parts .

`` The job that I used to do for a long time , we thought we 'd retire there , '' McManus said . `` It feels good to go to work everyday and have something to do . ''

The signs of transformation in West Point are everywhere . There 's new construction , including the city 's first new subdivision in 25 years . And businesses that once struggled are feeling the uptick .

Williams recently replaced her restaurant floor because of all the new foot traffic .

`` We see a lot of people we do n't know now . They want to see where the Kia site 's gon na be built , '' Williams said . `` We always say if we can get them in here one time , we can get them back , and they come . They 're coming back . ''

Tom Oswald , owner of West Point Shoe Outlet , said last year was his best year ever .

`` Once Kia announced they were opening we 've sold mostly steel-toed shoes for construction workers , '' he said . `` Now we 're selling wingtips for men and heels for ladies . ''

And Malcolm Malone , who runs M&M Car Wash , said business is booming .

`` It 's been up at least 70 percent , '' said the 44-year-old West Point native . `` It 's like Christmas . ''

Or perhaps a little divine intervention deserves credit , as a West Point sign pointed out : `` Thank You Jesus For Bringing Kia to Our Town . ''

New flavors

On Main Street , residents are sampling new flavors that have come to West Point since the announcement .

Asian restaurants and businesses are popping up . The old Pizza Hut has transformed into a Korean Bar-B-Que , and the southern staple KFC is now a popular Korean eatery called Young 's Garden .

Resident Christy Magbee said West Point is starting to feel like a melting pot .

`` You got the culture coming in . You do n't have to travel to Atlanta anymore . It 's starting to come here , '' she said .

`` The old downtown is new again . It 's an exciting time , '' Ferguson said . `` For us there 's a light at the end of the tunnel . ''

CNN 's Alina Cho contributed to this report .

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Mayor : West Point , Georgia , could get 20,000 jobs resulting from Kia car plant

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Before Kia announcement , business owner thought town was `` gon na die ''

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News spurs construction of West Point 's first new subdivision in 25 years

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Auto workers from Detroit , elsewhere applying for jobs at plant , mayor says